


Sanctuary

by NarnianHobbit



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Sad, Slow Romance, Tragic Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2018-10-07
Packaged: 2019-05-30 07:03:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15091574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NarnianHobbit/pseuds/NarnianHobbit
Summary: Tired of his repetitive life in Burgess, Jackson Overland wants nothing more than to leave and seek adventure like in the stories he's read.His boredom is finally over when he meets someone who gets accused of using witchcraft.The pond becomes their safe haven and he finds that it's much harder to leave home than he thought.





	1. Chapter 1

Whoever told him that horses were gentle creatures were lying.

Jackson Overland despises them. He always thought he could handle anything. Hunting isn't a problem for him. Catching chickens and herding sheep? That's a little tougher but he'd get them into their cages and stables eventually. But horses? They drive him insane. All because of a certain brown and white spotted mare who refuses to go inside the stable. It also didn't help since it's the middle of October and it's getting cold enough that trees were losing their leaves.

"Come on, Maple! Why do you always have to make this hard for me?" Jackson pleads with the brown mare, tugging on its reins. But the horse refuses to budge from its place.

He exhales sharply, narrowing his brown eyes at the horse. Maybe he's going insane. He's arguing with a stubborn creature who can't even argue back. Which, oddly enough, reminds Jack of his father who's a stubborn man but meant well. He often wonders if that's where Maple got her personality from. Out of all the horses his father owned, he favors Maple the most. He wouldn't be surprised actually.

For a second, he swears he sees Maple glaring at him. He lets out a huff of air and pinches the bridge of his nose in exasperation. He's going to be there all day and it's already freezing with snowflakes falling from the sky and wind gently blowing around him. He's thankful he has his poncho even though he insisted that he doesn't need it.

"Alright, we can do this the hard way or the easy way," Jack reasons with her, folding his arms across his chest. But she refuses to budge from her spot. "Maple, I swear to the Heavens above if you don't get in there, you won't get any oats for a week."

If horses had personalities, he'd imagine it laughing at him.

"Wow, you actually managed to threaten a horse," a familiar gravelly voice says from behind him. "You've reached a whole new level of low. I'm disappointed in you, Jackson."

He whirls around, thinking his father was behind him. But he only sees a blond haired boy around his height, leaning against the barn wall and taking a bite out of a red apple. Jack's brown eyes meet his friend's blue ones. He has his long sleeves rolled up to his elbows and brown suspenders over his white shirt.

"You sound like my father," Jack tells the boy, inwardly sighing with relief. "Don't do that."

"That's the point," the boy says, raises his eyebrows. He glances at the horse beside Jack skeptically. "You know, threatening her is not going to make her like you. It's just gonna make her more aggressive."

"Oh, and suddenly you're the horse expert, Matt?" Jack snickers, shoving him slightly.

Matt merely laughs sarcastically and shoves him back. He reaches into his pocket and tosses another red apple at him which Jack catches easily with his free hand. Jack raises his eyebrows at the fruit but takes a bite into it before following him back to Maple.

"Trust me, you do not want to threaten them," Matt advises as he walks towards the mare.

Jack stutters, muttering protests that the older boy ignores. He jaw drops in disbelief as Matt pats the horses snout and coos softly at it. Maple doesn't even flinch under the older boy's touch.

"Oh come on, that's completely unfair!" Jack splutters, frowning at the smirk on his friend's face. "Hell, even Emma gets to go near her! Me? No I get the look!"

Both the mare and Matt stare at him with deadpan expressions.

"Yeah, that one!" Jack exclaims, giving them an accusatory glare.

" You're making this harder than it needs to be, Jackson," Matt says. His blue eyes glisten with amusement. He pats Maple a few more times just to get a reaction out of him.

"You're both unbelievable," Jack says without any emotion. He glances at the two of them and his eyes lit up as if he'd just gotten an idea. "Hey, why don't you put her in the stable?"

Matt's hand hovers over the horses' neck. He turns toward Jack and asks, "Why?"

"Because she likes you better and you're my best friend in the whole wide world?" Jack asks in a sickeningly sweet tone, wrapping his arm around Matt's shoulders. Matt only stares back, not amused by the affection. Alright, if that didn't work, he'd have to step up his game. "You can come over at our house and have some of my mother's famous beef stew."

He notices Matt's hesitation. Oh, he has him now. There's no way he can turn down food.

"No," Matt says firmly.

Looks like he isn't falling for any tricks today. Jack sighs and shakes his head. Matt usually took the bait. This'll be tougher than he thought. Then he thinks about a certain brunette and how Matt had been avoiding her recently. Which is odd now that he thinks about it. Those two were never seen without the other.

"I'll give you more alone time with Piper," Jack mentions their friend's casually. Matt whirls around, freezing at the mention of her name and he stares with wide, horrified eyes. Check and mate. Jack smirks at the reaction. "Or I'll tell her that you have a little crush on her."

"You wouldn't," Matt splutters. His neck turns a bit red.

"Oh believe me, I would," Jack taunts and pokes the blond.

"Fine, fine!" Matt waves his arms around in an embarrassed fashion.

Jack only smiles smugly and watches as Matt tugs on the horses' leash and brings her inside. Jack merely laughs when his friend mutters curses that would catch a sailor off guard. Matt comes back, glaring at him.

"You owe me for this!"

"As always," Jack says, dismissing the threat with a cheeky wave of his hand.

"Have I ever told you how much I hate you?"

"All the time," Jack smiles.

"I'm gonna marry her one day, just you watch," Matt warns, pointing at him.

"Sure you will," Jack rolls his eyes.

"You're not gonna be invited to the wedding!"

"Oh good, I hate weddings!"

Matt frowns and throws his arms around Jack. Jack struggles out of the older boy's hold and bursts out laughing Matt's fist digs into his skull. Jack stops laughing when a snowball collides against his neck. He yelps in surprise and tries to whirl around to see the culprit but it's hard since he's still in Matt's arms. Both boys freeze when they hear giggling from somewhere near them.

"Alright, come on out, you two," Jack calls out, amusement dancing in his eyes as he nudges Matt, urging him to play along. The older boy just rolls his eyes and releases him but a small, fond smile spreads on his lips. "We know you're out there!"

The two boys glance at each other when there's no response. That couldn't be right. They had to be hiding behind the trees. They whirl around, keeping an eye out for intruders. Another snowball hits the back of Matt's head. He yelps, touching the spot where it hit him. Jack swoops down and reaches for the pile of snow beneath his feet and stands back up again. He holds the snowball against his back, waiting to strike when they appear.

"Nice shot, Emma!" an older, feminine voice shouts. Her voice echoes throughout the area.

Jack sees a girl about his age reveal herself from behind a tree to his right. She's his height. Her brown hair reminds him of a bush, it's always sticking out everywhere despite it being in a braid. Her dark eyes are sparkling with mischief. A younger girl appears behind her, with matching dark hair and dark eyes. Emma. At least, he knew where she ran off too earlier.

"Thank you, Piper," Emma giggles, and sweeps up her brown skirt in a curtsy. The two girls smile and give each other high fives.

"Should've known it was you, Emma," Jack interrupts, smiling.

"I couldn't resist," Emma says, shrugging. "No hard feelings?"

Oh, he wouldn't be falling for that innocent smile anytime soon.

"Of course not," Jack says, mocking her. She narrows her eyes at the tone in his voice.

"What's that behind you, Jack?" She asks, tilting her head so that she could see. But he moves from her line of sight, laughing.

"Nothing!"

"Doesn't look like nothing!" Emma exclaims, distrusting him.

"Would I lie to you?"

"Yes! You always play tricks!" She says, placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh, hi mister mayor, fine day today, isn't it?" He asks, glancing behind the two girls.

They both whirl around, gasping. But there's no one behind them. Jack tosses the snowball in his hands and it hits the back of Emma's head. She squeals in shock and whirls around, brown eyes wide.

"Hey, no fair!" she whines. Jack bursts out laughing and exchanges a high five with Matt who merely shakes his head at their behavior. "This means war!"

The four of them sprung to life at those words and scatter away to search for a place to hide. Like Jack, the other three had the same idea to hide in between the trees. Something wet and cold collides with the back of his neck and he stiffens, slowly turning around to see the culprit. Matt's standing there with a smirk on his face. Well, I'll be damned, Jack thought, smirking. Didn't know Matt had it in him.

"Any last words, Matt?" He taunts, tossing the snowball into the air a few times as he slowly walks toward his friend.

"Oh hi, Mister Mayor," Matt greets, tilting his head to glance at someone behind Jack.

"Ha! There's no way I'm falling for that trick!" Jack mocks, ready to throw the snow in his hands.

"Causing trouble again, Jackson?" A rich voice booms behind him.

Jack yelps in shock and whirls around. He comes face to face with a tall,plump man with thinning gray hair standing behind them. His misty,bespectacled eyes stare at the small group of friends in amusement.

"Mr. Anderson!" Jack gasps, ignoring the way his heart beats frantically. He hides the snow behind his back. "Fancy seeing you here today."

"I was just taking a stroll," Mr. Anderson reassures, smiling although it doesn't seem to reach his eyes. " It calms the stress after a long day of paperwork. Please, don't let me spoil the fun. How's the family, Matthew?"

Jack's eyebrows furrow in confusion, not understanding the hostile tone underneath the pleasantry exchange. He glances over at Matt who's gone stiff like a statute and averting his eyes as if finding the ground more interesting. How odd. He'd never seen this side of his friend before. Actually, now that he thought about it, he never heard Matt talk about his family before either. Beside Matt, Piper also notices the odd behavior and frowns at the boy. She gives him a gentle nudge and when Matt glances at her, she nods her head towards the old man.

"They're doing just fine, sir," Matt mumbles, rubbing the back of his head.

"That's good to hear," Mr. Anderson says with a firm nod of his head, "I hope they're doing okay," He clears his throat when Matt doesn't answer. He adds as an afterthought, "Say hi to yours for me, will you Jackson?"

"Yes, sir," Jack says, with an awkward salute.

The group of friends stands there, silently watching their town leader slowly continue down the snowy path, humming under his breath as he did. The air was still thick with tension around them and Jack glances at his group of friends with a frown on his face. His friends were acting stranger than usual. Sure, Mr. Anderson had a stern expression and could be intimidating at times but he never thought anything of it.

"C-come on, let's get going," Matt says after an awkward silence.

"Where?" Emma asks, staring at the older boy curiously.

"Anywhere but here," Matt says, gritting his teeth.

Jack and Emma exchange a glance, slightly concerned about the older boy's odd behavior. Now he was curious to know more about his family. Did he ever mention them? He can't remember. They walk together quietly until they hear loud laughter from up ahead. Oh, what now? Jack whines in his head. In their line of vision, they could see a large group standing in front of a girl. Her bright, red hair was the first thing he noticed. What were they doing? Taking his worry off of Matt for a moment, he walks closer to the other group, ignoring his friends calling out for him.

As he sneaks closer and closer, he hides behind a bush. One of the boys was saying something that he couldn't quite make out. He hears Piper gasp beside him and it takes him a moment to realize why she's so horrified. They're tossing stones at the red haired girl. Her head's bowed down so he couldn't see her face properly. But she just stands there, hardly doing anything to stop them. The stones were grazing her cheeks and neck, leaving small red cuts on her skin. Of all his time spent in Burgess, he never witnessed anything like that before. Why were they doing that?

"We-we should do something!" Jack exclaims, eyes wide.

"No," Matt says, so firmly that it stops Jack in his tracks. "We'll just get in trouble."

Jack whirls around, astonished that the older boy would suggest that.

"What? We do nothing?" Jack exclaims. "How can you say that?"

"Go ahead and help her yourself for all I care," Matt says harshly. Jack frowns at the hostile tone. What's gotten into him? He'd been acting strange since the mayor interrupted their snowball fight. "You coming, Piper?"

Jack sees Piper's eyes anxiously dart back and forth between the two. She bites her lip and tugs on her braid. She looks torn between wanting to help the girl and following Matt. He scoffs at the two and decides for her. He runs off, ignoring both hers and his sister's protests.

"Hey!" He calls out. They all whirl around at the sound of his voice.

He and the girl's eyes meet and it's like they're the only ones in the crowd. She has blue eyes. His breath gets caught in his throat and it's hard to breathe for a moment. She's frowning at him. He slowly walks up to them in a few strides, holding his staff casually on his neck. Their laughter brings him back to his senses and he grips his staff tighter, frowning at the odd moment. He shakes his head to get a hold of himself. What was that?

"This is the cavalry?" One of the boys jeers. "You must be joking."

"I dunno, I like to think I'm pretty serious," Jack walks up to them and leans against his staff, smirking slightly. Even the girl is staring at him like he's gone insane.

"Jackson?" Another boy makes a noise that only can be described as a laugh and a huff of air. "Never thought I'd see you again."

Jackson eyes the boy skeptically for a sign of familiarity. He had short, blond hair hidden underneath a hat and green eyes. He wore a dark grey vest over his long sleeved white shirt. He tosses a stone in the air a few times.

"Do I know you?" He asks because he certainly didn't know the boy.

"We used to go to the same school," the boy shrugs, as if he wasn't stung by not being remembered. "You tackled me to the ground."

"Oh, yeah, you were that bully," Jack greets nonchalantly with a shrug. "Still having fun tormenting people, I see?"

"Still can't mind other people's business, I see?" The other boy mocks.

"Touche."

"Look, you mind leaving us alone?" He asks, pointing at the girl who's frown never left her face. She stares back at forth between them curiously. "We're kind of busy here."

"Or really?" Jack prompts, walking in a slow circle around the teens. The group tenses as he does, exchanging confused looks. "Because it seems like you're terrorizing the little lady over there."

"Again, it's really none of your business," Bill argues, frowning.

"I think it is," Jack counters.

"Bill," the blonde haired girl warns. Jack raises his eyebrows at the way she places a hand on the bully's shoulder. So the bully does have a name, he muses.

"Oh pipe it!" 'Bill' shrugs off her hand and glares at her. "I'm just gonna teach him a lesson is all." She purses her lips but begrudgingly nods her head and steps back into the group behind her.

Bill lunges at him. Jack stiffens and thrusts his staff in front of him for protection. A huge gust of wind bursts from nowhere and Bill is tossed aside like a rag doll and hits a nearby tree before he can tackle him. Wait, what just happened? Where did that wind come from? Bill looks around with wide eyes so comical that it's hard for Jack to hold in his laughter. The group of teens rush towards Bill, screaming his name and asking if he was alright..

"Get off me!" He shouts, swatting their hands away as he gets back up to his feet. "Let's get out of here!"

They shout over one another in agreement.

"Yeah, you better run!" Jack exclaims, cackling as they scatter away like mice hiding from a trap. He glances at the girl, who's slowly picking herself up off the ground. He walks over to her and offers his hand. "Hey, you okay?"

"I don't need your help!" The girl exclaims harshly. Her tone makes Jack recoil from her. She stands back up by herself. Their eyes meet again briefly before she turns away. "I could have handled it myself!"

"Sure, you could," he scoffs, hardly believing what he was hearing. She merely walks off without sparing him another glance. "You know, A simple thank you would've been appreciated!"

The only thing he got in response was silence. He shakes his head and walks off a different direction away from her, back to his little sister, who's waiting for him patiently by the hilltop.


	2. Chapter 2

Jack couldn't stop thinking about her. It's all he could think about the entire time he did his chores and frankly, it bothered him. Sometimes he finds his eyes drifting over to the forest on the other side of the snowy road. Emma's with him; taking care of the chickens and getting some fresh eggs for tomorrow's breakfast.

"You okay, Jack?" Emma asks, narrowing her eyes in concern.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Jack reassures her with a wave. "Sorry, Emma. What were you saying?"

"I was saying that Piper seemed awfully upset with Matt yesterday," Emma singsongs. Her brown eyes are gleaming with mischief as she kicks up some snow into the air.

"I don't blame her."

"What?" She furrows her eyebrows in confusion at the bitter tone. "Oh, you're talking about what happened yesterday! No, she wasn't actually upset about that."

"Really?" Jack pauses. Wait, what was she talking about? "Why was she upset?"

"'Cause she thinks that Matt's marrying someone," Emma says so casually that Jack thought he was hearing things. He pauses in his tracks to comprehend what she just said.

"Wait, what?" Jack asks, still in disbelief.

"I think she got jealous!" Emma exclaims, giggling. "She overheard you two talking about marrying somebody, that's why she wanted me to toss the snowball but it hit you instead."

He nearly bursts out laughing at the thought. This took a turn that he didn't see coming. If someone asked him if his two best friends liked each other back in their school days, he probably would have laughed. Just the thought of it seemed so absurd. Those two butt heads so often. Hell, he still wandered how the three of them became friends. They were all so different.

"Looks like Matt was right after all," Jack muses.

"Right about what?" Emma asks, tilting her head to stare up at her brother curiously.

"Ah, it's nothing," Jack says, dismissing her with a lopsided smile. "So what do you think? Does she like him?"

Emma scrunches her nose in distaste, "Nah," she shakes her head. "Well, I dunno, maybe. I still think that boys have cooties."

From the corner of his eye, he sees someone he recognized. Her bright red hair stood out in the snow even when it's tucked underneath her brown laced hat. He frowns when she strolls up to the forest. She hadn't seen the two of them. Where was she going? To the pond?

He glances up at the sky which was beginning to turn orange at the peak of the mountains. It's going to be dark soon.

"Hey, Emma?" He calls to his sister. She whirls around and raises her eyebrows at him. "Why don't you head on home? There's something I need to do real quick."

"Alright," she says slowly. She tilts her head to her left side and furrows her eyebrows. "But don't be too late. You know how mama gets."

"Yeah, I know," he grins. "Go on. I'll be quick as a bunny!"

Emma giggles at the saying. She playfully shoves him and continues gliding across the snowy path toward their home. At least, he hoped that it wouldn't take too long. As he walked through the forest, the more tense he became. He knew the path ever since he was a child. It wasn't that hard to go through it during the day. But when moonlight was the only way of guiding him without a lantern and it only glistened between the treetops, he stood on edge. He found himself getting closer to the pond.

He'd heard the stories surrounding the place.

His parents told him that he shouldn't go there at night. There was something evil waiting for children. If anyone went there by themselves, they'd vanish and never be heard from again. Of course, he never believed in those stories. He always thought it was to scare children into behaving. But, he couldn't help but think that maybe there was some truth to them. The girl vanishes from his line of sight.

_He's on his own._

Alarm bells ring in his ears. His breathing quickens and he brings his staff closer to him absentmindedly as his eyes dart between the trees. Where could she have gone? Did she get lost? He hears the trees rustle in the wind and dark leaves whirl around him.

For a moment, he thinks he sees a shadow in the darkness and a pair of yellow eyes staring at him. He blinks and the shadow is gone. He shakes his head. His own mind was playing tricks on him. It's those stupid stories.

He hears a twig snap from somewhere behind him and whirls around. There's an odd black horse with yellow eyes staring right at him, snorting as it walks closer. Was that the same thing he saw in the shadows? He opens his mouth to scream but no sound came out. It kept moving towards him and as it moved, wisps of black smoke surrounds its hooves. He needs to get out of there.

But he can't run. It's blocking his only way out. He steps backwards into the crisp water. Can he even get past it? What if it chases after him? He takes a deep breath. He doesn't have a choice. He'd have to take that risk. He holds his staff out in front of him protectively, hoping that it might be threatening enough to distract it and sprints towards the creature.

He hears a battle cry from somewhere near him and a blur of red swoops down from the treetops. The girl from yesterday stood in front of him protectively. She's holding a walking stick that looks almost similar to his staff but there's an unnatural blue glow around it.

"What are you doing here!?" The girl shouts in a raspy tone, narrowing her eyes at him.

He didn't trust himself to speak. His mouth kept opening and closing as he thought of something intelligent to say to her. But he's too shaken up from what happened to think properly.

"Get out of here!" she yells.

She didn't need to tell him twice.

He runs  blindly into the forest like his life depends on it, not even caring if he trips over a tree root. He doesn't  stop until he sees a familiar farm house and white picket fence in the distance. He gasps for breath as he reaches for the doorknob. It's locked. He pounds on the door, calling for his parents and to his relief, his mother opens the door.

He's never been so happy to see his family. His mother stares at his disheveled appearance with wide, horrified eyes.

"What on earth happened to you, Jackson Overland?" She gasps shrilly. Next thing he knows, he's tackled into a hug. "You look like a fright!"

"I'm sorry, mother, I didn't listen!" he clings to her for dear life. He wills the tears at bay. She frowns at him. He doesn't blame her. He hasn't cried since he was a child and he's not going to anytime soon.

"Are you alright?" She asks softly, brushing his hair from his eyes. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Despite the scare from earlier, he laughs albeit hysterically.  He might as well have. He doesn't understand what happened. He isn't sure if he wanted to understand. If he told the truth, his parents wouldn't believe him.

"Get to bed, will you? " she says, pressing a kiss against his cheek. "It's late."

He nods wordlessly and makes his way upstairs towards his room. He's not sure if he can go to bed with what he saw out in the woods. He's  never going there again.


	3. Chapter 3

Despite Emma's constant chatter and their fathers' occasional murmurs of acknowledgement, the day at the Overland residence had been quiet. Snow fell from an ominous dark gray sky. Their fireplace was lit up to warm them up from the cold. Jack could see bits of frost gathering at the corners of the windows and it sometimes distracts him from the meal on his plate. He hasn't seen a blur of red hair all day. It's been a few days since he last saw her which he was alright with. He'd been avoiding that place since that incident. He sighs audibly, earning stares from his family but doesn't realize it until he turns his head away from the window.

 

  
"You alright, Jackson?" His mother calls over the sounds of clinging silverware. She takes a sip of her wine as she glances at him. "You're awfully quiet."

  
    His father quirks an eyebrow at that and looks up from his plate to stare at them curiously. Jack feels his neck heat up as all eyes fall upon him. Oh, he knew what this was about. How can he explained what happened to him last night without sounding like a loon?

"I met someone at the pond last night," he clears his throat at the confession and rubs the back of his head sheepishly.

 _No use lying about this now. They'd find out eventually especially with Emma's loud mouth._ But instead of a harsh scolding like he'd expect to receive, his parents exchange looks of worry.

"Was it that girl from yesterday?" Emma pipes up, smiling innocently at him. But her brown eyes were sparkling with mischief.

 _That little cheek!_ He glares at her but the corners of his mouth twitch up involuntarily. He was oddly proud of her desire to trick people. Jack winces when his parent's heads shot up quicker before he can get up from the dinner table.

"Emma," he whispers harshly. She sticks her tongue out at him.

"A girl?" They both ask in unison which was a bit frightening to be honest.

"Is it someone we know?"

"Is it Piper? Please tell me it's Piper!" Why'd his mother have to sound so excited about that?

"Everyone, calm down!" He flails his arms around, eyes nearly as wide as the dinner plates. "No, it's not Piper!" His voice had gone unusually high. Why'd it get so hot? It'd been freezing just a moment ago. "It's not Piper," he repeats, clearing his throat to get his voice deeper. "Don't get me wrong, she's amazing. But Matt won't stop going on about marrying her so that's out of the question."

   Why'd they have to look so disappointed at that? How'd he get stuck in this mess? He sends a glare at Emma. She's smirking at him. Oh ho ho, she knew what she just did. He'd get her back for that someday.

"Why were you at the pond?" His father asks in his stern tone. "We told you not to go there at night. It's dangerous."

"I know and I'm sorry," Jack winces. There's the scolding he'd been worried about. "I've learned my lesson. There's...there's something out there."

"In the woods?" His father's shoulders tense and he's not looking at him in the eyes anymore. As if he had something to hide.

"At the pond," Jackson corrects. "Do you remember the stories you guys told us? It's true."

     But even he wasn't so sure himself. He saw a flicker of recognition in their eyes and they glance at each other for so long it was like they were having a conversation in their heads. He could still see the girl so vividly in his mind and how she used the water to make the odd creature vanish into thin air. Should he mention her? He felt terrible for mentioning their encounter in the woods at all. She saved his life but she'd used magic to do it.

"What if I knew someone who was using magic?" He asks slowly and cautiously.

"Magic?" Emma gasps excitedly, leaning forward in her seat. "I knew magic was real! I just knew it!"

"Yes," their father interrupts with a stern expression. "Magic's real and it's dangerous. What were you thinking, Jackson? You should've reported her to the mayor!"

"But I couldn't tell for sure if she was using it or not!" Jack protests.

    He remembers what his parents told him about witches. They were evil and against everything that they believed in. Anything unnatural should be frowned upon. But this girl still saved his life. She didn't have to. She could have left him there to die. He knew what happened to witches when they were reported. He didn't want that to happen to her no matter how rude she was to him.

"That doesn't matter, Jackson," his father argues. "Nothing good can come from magic."

"But how do we know that for sure?"

"Just please promise me you won't go to the pond at night anymore, Jack?" His father asks.

"What is so frightening about going there at night?" Jack frowns, narrowing his eyes. He's had quite enough of his parent's secrecy. "What are you all hiding from us?"

"Listen to your father, Jack," his mother reprimands but her gaze softens when they lock eyes.

"Yes, ma'am," Jack agrees begrudgingly with a long sigh.

    Later that night, he heard a knock on his door. Frowning, he looks up from the book on his lap. He can see a small shadow in the orange light beneath the crack of his door.

"Come in," he calls, thinking it might've been his mother coming to check up on him and tell him to go to bed. It was getting awfully late.

But instead of his mother, Emma pokes her head out when she opens the door. She smiles sheepishly.

"Oh hey Em," he greets, closing the book.

"Can I come in?" she asks, still holding the door with both her hands. He nods his head and laughs fondly as she flings herself onto the bed. "Hey Jack, you weren't lying to mama and papa were you? Is magic real?"

"No tricks, I promise," he smiles, flicking her nose. She swats his hand away and pouts. "Magic's real and it's amazing."

He wasn't lying there. He never thought magic could be so graceful and real and comforting oddly enough. He really wished he had an opportunity to thank her and apologize for how he behaved.

"Is...is the Boogeyman real?"

Now, that's a name he hasn't heard since he was a kid. His mind drifts off to the large black mare with yellow eyes and how it left trails of black sand behind as it gallops around. He wasn't sure if he even believed in that fairy tale himself. Was that horse the Boogeyman?

"Nah, he isn't," he lies, wincing at her hopeful glance. "Don't you worry about that. That's nothing but a story."

"Then why would the Sandman give us nightmares?" Emma asks, lowering her head.

Jack gives her a worried frown, "Have you been having nightmares lately?"

She nods her head hesitantly and hides her face in her hair. Had he been so busy lately that he hadn't noticed something bothering her?

"Do you want to talk about them?" he asks softly, gently nudging her. She whimpers and shakes her head. "Hey, you don't have to worry about anything, alright? You got your big brother to protect you."

A ghost of a smile spread across her face.

"Oh come here, you!" Jack exclaims, laughing as he tickles her sides. She laughs shrilly despite her protests.

"Okay, okay! I give up! I give up!" Emma shrieks, squirming out of his hold. He chuckles as she shoves him away from her. It takes a few moments for their laughter to die down. "You're not going to report her, are you?"

"No, don't tell father," he says, pressing a finger to his lips. She giggles at the gesture and nods her head eagerly.

"Why does father hate it so much?" Emma whispers. "Is that why those kids were attacking that girl? 'Cause she's a witch?"

"I don't know, Em," Jack sighs. He wishes he did. All the rushed questions were making his headache worse. He hoped it didn't show on his face. He didn't want her to worry about him.

"Really wish I could've seen it, " Emma whispers, "It sounds so amazing."

"Maybe someday, squirt," Jack pokes her cheek. "Hey, don't fall asleep here! I won't take you to the pond tomorrow if you do."

She hums in reply and nudges closer toward his shoulder. She exhales sharply and all he can hear is her deep breathing. He scoffs in disbelief. She's out like a light.

Now that he thought about it. What was so bad about magic? Even in the fairy tales he's read, witches were portrayed as evil. He frowns at the thought. He glances down at Emma's sleeping form. She was snoring softly and there was a bit of drool leaving a trail from her mouth. He chuckles and shakes his head. If magic could be used to protect a person, he honestly wouldn't mind using it to protect Emma. If magic can be used to protect a person, it couldn't be all bad.

He hears a soft knock at his door and this time it's his mother who enters. She wraps her shawl closer around her for warmth and smiles at the two of them.

"Fell asleep in here again, huh?" She laughs as she walks toward them. Jack nods his head and returns the smile. "Get to bed too, will you? I know how much you love those books but you'll regret staying up late. Trust me."

Jack rolls his eyes but complies to her suggestion anyway, "I will, mother," he says, smirking.

"Now, now! Enough of that cheek!" his mother grins, poking his nose. She grabs Emma from the bed and pulls the sleeping girl into her arms. "G'night, Jack."

"Night, Mama," Jack says.

He watches at the two leave the room before sighing heavily and blowing out the candle on his bedside table. He lays there in the darkness for a few moments, staring up at his ceiling. He honestly didn't remember much from yesterday night. That creature couldn't have been real. There was just no way something like that was running around Burgess late at night. How could he not have seen it all those nights he stayed up late reading? Something just didn't seem right. He adjusts his position so that he's lying on his side and closes his eyes.

That night he dreams about gliding in the air with his bare feet hovering over the water.


	4. Chapter 4

He  hasn't gotten that much sleep lately. Since that day, he's been having dreams about black sand and yellow eyes. It's been a week since he last saw that girl. A whole week since he's been at the pond. He winces inwardly. He's  supposed to take Emma a few days back but never got to. She'd been giving him the silent treatment lately. He'd have to make it up to her.   

  
He's standing in the barn, listening to the chickens cluck as he feeds them some corn. He's taking his sweet time so that he can avoid the stable as much as possible. He doesn't even notice Matt walking up to him until the blond pushes him slightly. Jack opens his eyes, jumping at the touch. For a moment, it looked like there were two of them until his vision cleared. Thank goodness. He inwardly sighs with relief. The world doesn't  need another Matt. One's bad enough.

"A week, Matt," Jack scoffs, shrugging the hand off of his shoulders, "Really?"

"You alright there, Jackson?" Matt frowns, ignoring his previous comment. "You look like you're gonna fall over."

"Why didn't you help?" Jack asks, avoiding the other boy's gaze. He had half a mind to scold him. The other half wants to ignore him completely but that would've been too childish.

"Look," Matt exhales sharply, voice trailing off as he thought. "It's complicated. You wouldn't understand."

"What wouldn't I understand!?"

"A lot of things," Matt deadpans. "Just trust me on this, please?"

He doesn't agree with a lot of Matt's decisions. Matt's  an emotionally constipated person. Any talk of feelings and the blond would be out of the room so fast one would think he's racing a rabbit. He's trying to understand the older boy's odd behavior. Maybe Matt and the girl didn't get along in the past. She did come off as rude from their previous encounter. _It still didn't make it right._ He drops it for now and changes the subject, sensing Matt's unease.

"So how's the love life?" Jack wriggles his eyebrows suggestively. Matt turns such a bright red that he's matching his vest. Jack's lips quirk up in amusement.

"Non-existent!" Matt shouts. His eyes dart around the barn as if he's looking for an escape route.

"Oh come on," he smiles lopsidedly. "You still haven't asked her yet?"

"Easy for you to say, you don't have a love life either!"

"I'm oddly okay with that actually," Jack shrugs his shoulders.

"Just watch, you're gonna turn into a hermit when you get older!"

"I don't know about you but that sounds pretty exciting."

"Oh, for the love of--!" Matt presses a hand against his forehead, sighing heavily. "Why do I even argue with you? You're impossible!"

The two boys fell into a comfortable silence, watching the chickens run amok. Jack can't help but admit how soothing animal noises were to his ears. He's  always around them and it helps him think.

"Hey, Jack?" Matt asks hesitantly. Jack hums in response. "How are you and Emma so close? Don't you...don't you ever get tired of being around her all the time?"

Matt's face is unreadable. Jack tilts his head in his friend's direction and frowns at the tension. What brought that on all of a sudden?

"Well, yeah, she does get annoying sometimes," Jack admits, pondering over his question. "But you know what, aren't all siblings are? I think we get along so much because we have similar things we like."

Matt frowns and turns away as if he were thinking over his answer. He didn't say anything else which made Jack tense as they walk outside of the barn together.

They can see Piper folding laundry by the house nearby and placing them on clothespins, hanging them on a long wire in between two oak trees. Matt inhales sharply. Jack follows his friend's eyes toward the brunette girl and smirks. Her hair isn't tied in a braid today and she isn't wearing her usual bright pink dresses. She's wearing a light blue dress with an apron tied to her waist. Yup, his friend is a goner.

"You know what, maybe I'll become a hermit with you," Matt says, breaking the awkward silence. "Being a hermit isn't so bad, right?"

"Nope, I claimed that job already," Jack shook his head, smiling cheekily as he leaned against the taller boy's shoulder. "You're gonna be a married man someday, remember?"

They both pause in their tracks when Piper glances over at their direction. She smiles and waves before turning her attention to the laundry in front of her.

"Lord give me strength," Matt breathes, smiling.

He zones out during their conversation and sees a flash of red by the forest. _It's the girl again!_ His heart leaps at the opportunity and he finds himself moving towards her.

"Where are you going?" Matt frowns at Jackson's odd behavior. "You're not going to meet up with Piper?"

"There's something I have to do," Jack replies, pressing his lips into a thin line. Which wasn't far from the truth. He really needed to speak with her again. "Go on without me."

"Okay," Matt drawls out skeptically.

He sprints for the woods. Thankfully it's still light outside that he could see the pathway in front of him. Few people visited the pond during winter time because the ice. They'd rather swim than slide on the surface. But he didn't think she was there for ice skating. She's  sitting on the bench, looking at something beyond the ice.

"Hey," he calls out softly.

She yelps in surprise and whirls around, staring at him with wide eyes. She grabs her staff and points it at him threateningly.

"Whoa, whoa!" He flail his arms around, taking a step back as she advances. He laughs nervously. "Easy! I didn't mean to scare you."

She pauses in her tracks but doesn't take her eyes off him. She looks him up and down as if she were sizing him up and debating if he was a threat or not. She meets his eyes and they stare at each other for a moment. Her expression is unreadable.

"Why are you here?" She asks slowly. "Are you following me?"

"No, no!" He protests, "I just want to talk is all."

"Well, then you wasted your time." She's about to head into the forest.

"Wait!" He calls out. She stops in her tracks but doesn't turn around. He wasn't expecting her to actually acknowledge him. She's expecting a response. His breath hitches as he blurts, "What was that creature? The one that attacked me."

She doesn't reply right away but she doesn't ignore him. That had to be a good sign, right? Should he have mentioned it? The curiosity's slowly driving him to the brink of insanity."You mean the demon?" It sounds more like a statement than a question.

His eyebrows rose at such a bitter answer. Whatever he expected, that wasn't it. Demons? She couldn't be serious. Well, just yesterday he didn't believe in the existence of witches and magic. So he gave her the benefit of the doubt.

"Is that what it was?" He asks skeptically.

"I'm not too sure myself," she admits. She whirls around and he's staring into her eyes again. "They don't normally attack people. Just people's dreams."

"People's dreams?" He echoes, raising his eyebrows. "Then why'd it attack me?"

"Because you were vulnerable," she says bluntly. "Did you see the trails of sand on its hooves?"

"Not really, I was busy running for my life," he smiles sheepishly.

"What if I told you that there's someone out there giving you good dreams and bad dreams?" She drawls hesitantly. 

"Wait, wait, wait, are you trying to tell me that the Sandman and the Boogeyman are real?"

She nods her head and waits patiently. Jack's laugh was borderline hysterical. He can't believe this! He had to be dreaming this conversation right now. There's  no way that something from a fairy tale was giving everyone in the world dreams and nightmares. That's children's stories! He's patient. He'd been willing to listen to her when she mentioned the demons. He remembers reading about them somewhere in church. But the Boogeyman? The Sandman?

"Do you realize how insane that sounds?" He asks, voice higher than usual. She flinches at his tone but he doesn't make anything of it. "You aren't lying to me are you?"

"It's the truth," she says so softly that he thought he imagined it.

"Then why haven't I been able to see them until yesterday?"

"Because you've never believed in them," she says, looking stricken. "Because I've been fighting them for years."

He softens up. All traces of disbelief and judgment were gone. She'd been protecting people even though they seem to treat her differently? Why would she even do that? Why go through fighting those creatures everyday just to get torment? He doesn't understand her reasoning. He doesn't understand anything about her.

"Who've you been fighting to protect?"

"The kids," she says with a soft smile on her face.

Alright, that he understands. They were good kids. A little rowdy at times especially at bonfires when they were rough housing one another but none of them deserve to have nightmares.

"They're the creatures giving my little sister nightmares?"

"Little sister?" She echoes, frowning.

"How do I stop them?"

"What?" She jumps out of her stupor and looks taken aback by how serious he is.

"Train me."

"You're joking," She gasps, furrowing her eyebrows. "I know how much you care for your sister. But it's not going to be easy."

"I don't care," Jack says. If he could herd sheep without any problems, he could handle anything.

"I won't be getting rid of you anytime soon, am I?" A ghost of a smile spreads across her lips.

 Jack smiles. It's the first time he's seen her do that since they met. She should do it more often.

"'Fraid not, miss," he winks at her and gives her an over the top bow that she rolls her eyes at. "Name's Jackson Overland."

"Elizabeth Sinclair," she introduces, curtsying awkwardly. 

"Nice to meet ya," he says and he truly means it. "I'm looking forward to helping you out."

"Get some sleep then," she says with an exasperated sigh. "You're gonna need it."

They weren't exactly friends yet. But she isn't pushing him away anymore like she did when they first met. It's a start. He ponders over it until he went home. It wasn't until he got home when he realizes he hasn't thanked her for saving his life. He sighs. He'd have to thank her tomorrow when he got the chance to. 

"Hey, Jack!" Emma tackles him to a hug. "We missed you today."

"I know, sorry Emma," he ruffles her hair and grins. "How were the lovebirds today?"

"They're the same as always," Emma snickers. "Did you do something? Matt seemed awfully skittish."

"Maybe," he singsongs. Emma rolls her eyes and shoves him. 

"You talked with that girl again today, huh?" She asks, searching his face though he doesn't know what for.

"The Boogeyman's real," he whispers. She freezes and her breath hitches as she hides behind her hair. He frowns at her. 

"He is?" She asks just as softly.

"Hey, don't you worry about a thing, okay?" He nudges her shoulder. She doesn't protest but he sees her pout. "I'm gonna stop him."

"How?"

He doesn't know either. He doesn't know how tough training will be. He doesn't know what he's even getting himself  into. He hears Emma yawn softly beside him. 

"Come on, let's get to bed before mama yells at us," he urges. 

"I'm not tired though," she yawns as she stretches her arms out. Jack chuckles and shakes his head. 

"I'll believe that when pigs fly, Emma," he tells her. She sticks her tongue out at him, tells him goodnight, and heads out the door, shutting it gently behind her.

He had another nightmare that night.

He's running from a man hidden in the shadows. A man that had yellow eyes. Darkness swirls up his leg and torso until he's completely engulfed in it.

The man in the shadows won.


	5. Chapter 5

He made a horrible mistake.

Learning magic isn't nearly as fun as he thought it'd be. Elizabeth wasn't kidding when she told him learning magic isn't going to be easy. It's hard for him to sit still for a long time. He always has to be doing something or else he'd get bored. She told him to listen to the sounds around him. But he doesn't exactly know what he's listening for. He groans and falls back into the snow with his arms spread out as if he were about to make a snow angel. He probably looks ridiculous but he didn't care at the moment. He skips meeting with his friends for this!?

"I did tell you that it was going to be hard," she prompts, tilting her head in his direction.

"How do you make it look so easy?" He glares at her hands which were surrounded by a soft blue light.

"I've had years of practice," she replies. She must've noticed the stare he gave it because the glow instantly vanishes into thin air. "You're never going to get the hang of it if you keep moving around like that."

"Whatever you say, Lizzie," he thought about what he'd just said and scrunched his nose as if he smelt something awful. That nickname just didn't seem to suit her personality. "Actually, do you mind if I call you something else?"

Her eyebrows rise at such a strange request, "What did you have in mind?" She asks.

"How about "Beth"?" He asks, thinking it over. "I don't think I've ever met anyone with that name before."

"I don't think I've ever _heard_ anyone call me that before," she says with a thoughtful look on her face. She shrugs her shoulders. "Suit yourself, Jackson."

He made a face at the use of his full name, "Alright, I'll call you that, if you never call me that again," he says.

"But that's your name," she says, bewildered.

"Hearing my full name makes me feel like I've done something wrong," he winces. All the times his parents said it because of the tricks he's pulled on people came rushing back at him. "Just Jack is fine."

"If you say so," she says slowly. "Don't think giving me a new nickname is going to cut you some slack. You still have a lot of work to do, 'Just Jack'."

He groans childishly and shuts his eyes. Why couldn't magic just be controlled by thoughts? It would save him a lot of time and make his life so much easier.

Still, this was a lot better than hanging out at the stable with the horses. Actually, now that he thought about it, he'd rather be doing this than do chores around the house all day.

"How long is this going to take?" He whines.

"Well, if you learn to sit still and stay quiet, you'll learn the first step by today," she tells him.

"And that is...?"

"Listening," the deadpan stare she gives him could rival his best friend's. It's like he was talking with him right now.

"What exactly am I listening for?"

"If you're going to learn magic, the first thing you have to do is listen to the world around you," she says. She closes her eyes and breathes deeply as a gust of wind ruffles the trees around them. "Just close your eyes and listen, you'll know right away that something's different."

"And how long have you been doing this exactly?" He asks her skeptically.

"Since I was seven," she sighs. The look of dismay must've shown on his face because she shook her head in exasperation. "Just trust me on this, will you, Jack? After this, it'll be much easier."

Alright, he'll take her word for it. If it weren't for seeing the demon with his own eyes, he would've thought her to be insane along time ago. He sighs heavily, pursing his lips as he slowly shuts his eyes. The two of them fall into a comfortable silence. All he could hear was the wind whistling around them. Other than that, there wasn't anything special.

Jack exhales sharply and opens his eyes again. Nothing.

"It's not working!" He exclaims and glares at her. "Are you sure about this? You're not tricking me, are you? Because you can't trick the trickster!"

She tilts her head in his direction and gives him a look of exasperation. Can she really blame him for not trusting her?

"You're not concentrating hard enough," she reasons. "Or you just don't believe that you can do it."

He thought over it. She wasn't wrong. He doesn't believe that learning something like this was going to help stop the Bogeyman. Sitting still never helped him get anywhere.

"Try again," she insists.

He rolls his eyes. Alright, he believes her. There must've been something he missed. So he tries again. He sighs heavily and closes his eyes. He takes a slow, deep breath like she instructed him to do and lets it out. He repeats the trick a few times just to get the hang of it. She never told him what he was listening for.

A faint hum tickles in his ears. It's so soft and sounded like the church bells that rang every so often. It blends smoothly with the wind.

He gasps sharply and opens his eyes wide. He tilts his head over at her direction. There's a small smile on her lips and no signs of "I told you so" in her expression even though she had a right to tell him that.

"H-how?" He stutters.

"There's a reason why magic is so tied to nature," she says.

There's been something else nagging at the back of his mind since he met her. He still doesn't understand anything about her.

"Are you ever gonna tell me why they were bullying you?" He asks.

She doesn't say anything for a few minutes. Beth narrows her eyes and gets up from her position.

"You should really learn to mind your own business," she says and averts her eyes. He's taken aback by her evasive behavior.

"Look, I'm sorry if I-," he's quick to apologize.

"We're done for today," she interrupts. She's back to using that harsh tone when they first met. He frowns as she stomps away towards the forest without giving him another glance.

Now they were back to square one.

Maybe he shouldn't have brought it up. He understands that she might not tell him right away. But did she really have to be so rude about it? He shakes his head and stands on his feet. He isn't used to people treating him like that. He has to remind himself that some people were just hard to get along with. She's one of those people. _Baby steps, Jack. Baby steps. She has a good reason why she acts that way._

He sighs to himself and trudges through the snow, bracing himself for a long walk home.

He hopes that learning all this and putting up with her attitude would be all worth it in the end.


	6. Chapter Six

The skies were clearing up from the snowstorm last week, still cloudy but it's back to being a vibrant blue. It's still cold enough he had to bring a poncho with him everyday. He's been avoiding going to the pond, not sure how to approach Beth since their little spat. Could he really call it that? He'd been curious and asked her a question. Though now that he looks back, it might've been too personal.

He sees Piper out of her house while he's doing his own chores. Her hair is wild as ever even when it's tucked in a braid. Doing laundry must've been a part of daily routine because he sees her folding clothes by the stone well. He wonders over to her house (avoiding his own work) and grins slyly as he stands behind her.

"So a little birdie told me that you have a crush on Matt," he says casually. She yelps and jumps at his voice. She whirls around, gawking at him. Honestly though, she could've easily seen his shadow on the grass.

"H-how on earth did you find--?! " she stutters. Her hazel eyes flicker in recognition.

"Emma, " they say in unison.

"She tells me everything," Jack shrugs his shoulders.

"She can never keep a secret, can she? " she muses, shaking her head in exasperation.

"Just for the record, Matt wasn't talking about marrying just anyone, " he gives her a pointed look and her cheeks turn red.

His friends were idiots. They kept avoiding their feelings for each other when it was so obvious. It's hard to keep up with them. One minute they're practically holding hands then the next they'd be arguing. If that's what love is then he'd like to stay far from it as possible. Seems like it's too troublesome for what it's worth.

"Must you meddle, Jack? " she asks, folding her arms across her chest and frowns at him. Her movements vaguely reminds him of his mother.

"Of course I must, "he tells her, flicking her nose playfully. "Like it or not, we're the best of friends. "

"How could I forget? " she rolls her eyes and flattens out the bed sheets she's holding.

"Best of friends, " he sing songs, wrapping an arm tightly around her shoulders and batting his lashes.

"Ja--ack!" she whines, splashing him with the water from the stone well.

He laughs heartily, using his free arm to shield himself from the water. She joins in with him, nearly knocking the basket over. But his laughter fades as his thoughts drift over to Matt. As much as the blond annoyed him he couldn't help but worry. Matt's been avoiding them ever since they spoke with Mr. Anderson. It's not like him.

"Has he spoken to you yet? " Jack asks with a frown on his face.

"No, " she smiles sadly. "You know how he is when he gets like that. He just needs more time to himself. "

"Do you know anything about his family? " He probes her for answers. The question's been nagging at him since the mayor mentioned them.

"Only that they're not worthy to talk about or so Matt says, " she sighs, leaning against the well.

Just what kind of family did Matt have? At first he thought the blond might've been going through a rebellious phase. But he immediately disregards that theory the moment he thought of it. Matt isn't a rebellious person. He would've  been a lot more fun to be around otherwise.

"So I heard from someone that you've been seeing a certain girl a lot lately, " Piper says in a singsong voice.

He turns towards her in confusion at the sudden change in conversation. How did she know that?

"Wha--? Who told you --? " he questions then exhales sharply as his sister's face flashes quickly in his mind.

"Emma, " they say in unison.

Jack shakes his head. He needs to have a "learning how to keep people's secrets" chat with Emma later. Her big mouth could get her into trouble one day.

"What's she like? " Piper asks, "She must be friendly enough for you to keep talking to her. "

"Shes... odd, " he sighs, running his fingers through his messy, brown hair.

"That's all you can say about her? " she raises her eyebrow at his answer.

He thought about telling her that there was magic in the pond. He doubts his friends would believe him and if they did, he'd risk exposing it to the mayor which he didn't want to happen.

"She's interesting," he says after thinking it over. "She doesn't really like to go into town much after...well, you know. "

"Do you think that girl would like to come? " Piper bites her lip, her eyebrows furrowing from worry. "To the bonfire tomorrow night, I mean."

It's not crowded enough to make Beth shy away from it but the kids were rough with each other with their play fights and campfire songs.

"I'm not sure if she'd even go to that, " he says.

"I hope she can come," she smiles weakly. "I'd like to meet her. "

"I can try to ask her but I doubt she'll come, " he tells her. "she's kind of shy. "

From what he's noticed about her, she didn't want to be around people at all. Which he could understand; the need to get away from town. The townsfolk weren't as nice as the kids were.

"Please, let her know that she's welcome there, " Piper says, bringing him back to reality.

Jack smiles at her. She's always caring about others wellbeing more than herself. It's one of the reasons why he had a crush on her when he was a kid. He's not going to lie about being envious of Matt sometimes. He could tell how clearly Piper liked him. He always catches her eyes drifting over to the older boy whenever he's not looking. It's so sickening that it makes him want to vomit.

"I approve of you guys, you know, " he steers the conversation away from Beth and it works because Piper turns such a bright red that she's turning purple. He gives her a wolf like grin. "Oh come on, did you really think I wouldn't notice? "

"I-- I was hoping you wouldn't, " she splutters, covering a part of her face with a blanket in embarrassment.

"Well, I have to! " Jack pokes her cheek. "I'm gonna be the best man at your wedding after all! "

"Okay, that's enough of that! " Piper exclaims, throwing the blanket at him which he catches with ease. "You tease people far too much for your own good! "

"Only cause it's fun! " he laughs, throwing the blanket back at her. She fumbles with it for a bit before catching it and glares at him as she sets it down in a brown woven basket.

His laughter dies down as he finds his brown eyes darting over towards the forest. As much as he hates to admit it, he wants to go back there. Not to apologize exactly because he didn't know what he was apologizing for. But because he had a job to do. He has to protect Emma and his friends from those creatures. Was she waiting for him? Is she there?

"Thinking about her again?" Piper smiles at him knowingly.

"No, I --no I wasn't! " He denies. He can feel his neck and cheeks burning.

"A little birdie told me you had a crush on her, "Piper shrugs her shoulders.

"No I do--! " he protests and cuts himself off when he realizes. Wait, was she--? There's a small smirk on her face. She was! He couldn't have been more proud. "Oh I get it. Hardy har har. "

He rolls his eyes bit can't help but smile fondly when she bursts into a giggling fit. He found Beth interesting. He doesn't have a crush on her.

"Seriously though, Jack, can you think about it? " she asks when she sobers up.

"I will, " he promises. It means he has another reason to go into the woods. "What made you want to ask her anyway? "

Her smile quickly vanishes and her eyes downcast in a somber expression. Which makes him frown. She looks better when she smiles.

"She seems a bit lonely, doesn't she? " she asks after an awkward silence.

He shrugs his shoulders. He didn't know Beth well enough to dive into her mind. Their odd friendship (could he even call it that?) isn't the same as he is with Matt and Piper. Beth kept to herself and didn't like people. That's all he knew about her.

"Maybe, " his frown deepens.

He never really put much thought into what Beth felt. Is she lonely? He never thought to ask her if she was. He curses his inability to understand people's feelings. Why were people so confusing?

~*~


End file.
